Our Latest List of Events and Awards - Are you Attending?

Welcome to our latest curated list of events, contests and awards for small businesses, solo entrepreneurs and growing companies.  Check out the upcoming events and awards below.  To see a full list or to submit your own event, contest or award listing, visit the Small Business Events Calendar.

Featured Events, Contests and Awards

ICON14 by InfusionsoftICON14 by Infusionsoft
April 23, 2014, Phoenix, AZ

#ICON14 is the eighth annual conference for small business, hosted by Infusionsoft (previously called Infusioncon). Over 3,000 attendees expected. Confirmed speakers include Seth Godin, JJ Ramberg and Peter Shankman.

Hashtag: #ICON14
Discount Code
smallbiztrends (Get an extra $100 off)

Small Business Book Awards 2014Small Business Book Awards 2014
April 30, 2014, Online

The Small Business Book Awards honor the best business books published in 2013, and book resources (such as cover design, copy editing and more). No fee required. Get the recognition your book or resource deserves. Nominate now through April 30, 2014!

Hashtag: #BizBookAwards

More Events

More Contests

This weekly listing of small business events, contests and awards is provided as a community service by Small Business Trends and SmallBizTechnology.



Meme Marketing Hits Mainstream: Grumpy Cat Wins at MTV Movie Awards

internet meme marketing

Internet meme marketing celebrity Grumpy Cat hit the red carpet recently at the MTV Movie Awards. And she even left with her very own award, which we imagine didn’t exactly bring a smile to the feline’s face.

So what award did she win, anyway? Best cat? No. Best Meme? No. Grumpiest face? Well, sort of.

The frowning feline beat out all of the other celebrities and guests to win the ceremony’s “best dressed” award. Check out the award winning getup in the photo above. Grumpy Cat has now made it into the Hollywood elite, but this famous kitty got her start with just a few funny online photos. Here’s a look back at some of the key moments of Grumpy Cat’s rise to fame.

internet meme marketing

Grumpy Cat’s real name is Tardar Sauce. She first gained online notoriety in 2012 when one of her owners posted a picture of her on Reddit.com titled, “Meet grumpy cat.”

internet meme marketing

It didn’t take long for the picture of Tardar Sauce to go viral. Seemingly overnight, Grumpy Cat became the subject of countless grumpily captioned photos. Her owners eventually set up a website, secured an agent, and even filed for U.S. Trademark protection. They also began selling Grumpy Cat merchandise, from calendars to clothing, on the website.

internet meme marketing

In July 2013, Grumpy Cat’s owners expanded her brand with release of her very own book, “Grumpy Cat: A Grumpy Book.” The book includes photos, activities, and lessons in grumpiness. She also reportedly has a movie deal in the works.

internet meme marketing

Around this time, people finally started recognizing Grumpy Cat as a serious marketing phenomenon. She graced the cover of Direct Marketing News Magazine’s July issue.

internet meme marketing

And Grumpy Cat would soon make her first major foray into another industry with  her very own brand of coffee drink. She became the face of Grumpy Cat Grumppuccino in August 2013. Though, despite all this success, Grumpy Cat still never lost her trademark frown.

internet meme marketing

So what would be the next step for the cat who has done seemingly everything? The ability to control the weather?

Well, not exactly. But she can at least deliver a weather forecast to your smartphone. In September, the Weather Kitty app released an in-app purchase called, “The Grumpiest Forecast Ever.” This version of the app features photos of Grumpy Cat along with a daily forecast and grumpy caption.

Photo: Instagram



We’re Heading to ICON14 and Bringing YOUR Questions With Us!

Next week Ramon Ray and I will be heading to one of the most anticipated small business conference of the year, ICON14 (formerly known as Infusioncon). This 3-day conference, hosted by Infusionsoft, runs from April 23rd to April 25th and is packed with big ideas, powerful strategies and actionable insights to grow your business. Covering everything from Marketing, Social Media, Biz Dev and so much more this is THE conference for big ideas that will bring big results to your business. My main goal of being at ICON14 is to get information for YOU…the Smallbiztechnology.com reader!

If you want to come, there is still time to buy tickets . Can’t make it? Well - here’s your chance to ask the questions you want answers to from small business influencers and those running some very successful small businesses. These are the people who’ve experienced what you experience every day as someone running a small business and they’ve found a way to succeed! So, take a few minutes to share what you want to know and the questions you want answers to and I’ll ask them at ICON14!

Ask Your Questions and We’ll Get Answers

There will be plenty of speakers at ICON14, sharing small business insights in various informational sessions, but there will also be countless other companies, small business owners and entrepreneurs attending who will be ready to network and give interviews. No matter who we end up interviewing, we’d also like to go to ICON14 equipped with a selection of questions that YOU, the readers, want asked. If you were the interviewer, who would you want to interview and what questions would you want answers to? What small business topics do you want to see us cover? What things do you want to know regarding starting, growing, and sustaining a successful small business?

With a little bit input we can tailor our interviews and questions to get the information that YOU, our valued Small Biz Technology readers, find most interesting, valuable and essential. Please take a few seconds to check out the ICON14 site and submit what questions you want answers to and who you’d like to hear from! You can post your comments in the comment box below,  post them on our Facebook page  or send us a direct message on Twitter: @Gemini52469 or @ramonray

Thanks in advance for your input, and here’s to a successful ICON14 and getting YOU the information you need to help create success in YOUR small business!



Got 2 Hours and a Management Challenge? Read “Managing Your Business”

Got 2 Hours and a Management Challenge? Read “Managing Your Business”

Do you know why your business isn’t growing?  It’s probably because you think you know how to manage it all.  But, if you find yourself thinking you have too much to do, thinking you don’t have enough time and thinking, “I should not have to deal with this,” then guess what - you are in …

Content

Usefulness

Freshness

88

Summary

Primarily written for business owners “with infrastructure,” a business with employees and an ongoing concern, it’s actually a great resource for managers inside of a small business or mid-sized business as well.

88

Do you know why your business isn’t growing?  It’s probably because you think you know how to manage it all.  But, if you find yourself thinking you have too much to do, thinking you don’t have enough time and thinking, “I should not have to deal with this,” then guess what - you are in management overwhelm.

Managing Your Business (A Crash Course for Entrepreneurs) is a short and simple step in taking control of your management dilemma.  Written by a team of entrepreneurial veterans; Scott Girard, Michael O’Keefe and Marc Price (@expertbizadvice). Between the three of them, they’ve started and run more than 17 businesses.  They got together to create an entire series of short and sweet books for business owners called A Crash Course for Entrepreneurs.

The purpose of the Crash Course series is to give entrepreneurs overviews on the most important topics that drive business success.  Other installments in the series include:

  • Starting a Business
  • Sales and Marketing
  • Business Finance Basics
  • Business Law Basics

You could say that this is similar to the One-Minute Manager series or the Dummies’ series.  If you like those kinds of books, you will certainly appreciate this one.

I would say that this falls somewhere in between these two examples as far as details are concerned.  I would say it’s a 10,000 foot view of running your business instead of a 30,000 foot view or a 30 foot view.  It’s just big enough to help you get focused without becoming overwhelming.

Everything You Wanted to Know About Managing Your Business

The book is divided up into four chapters:

Chapter 1 - Leadership Basics: Where they summarize decades of tried and true leadership strategies along with the more recent tips on managing effectively.  This includes leadership styles and basic leadership skills

Chapter 2 - Polishing Yourself Up: Don’t be offended by this section of the book, rather take an open-minded look at professional etiquette, a handy section on common writing and speaking mistakes and a great chapter on walking the line between confidence and cockiness.

Chapter 3 - Employee Management: Whether your business has full-time, part time or even virtual employees, you’ll want to take look at this section.  Other than getting customers, this is the next most popular topic for business owners.  There are some terrific tips designed to help owners find and hire great employees as well as how to deal with difficult employees.

Chapter 4 - Strategic Thinking and Acting: Of course, there has to be a section that drives you to work ON your business and not IN your business.  This section is all about how to think and how to put your ideas into action.

It’s Just the Right Amount of Information for Overwhelmed Business Owners

While this book is primarily written for business owners “with infrastructure,” a business with employees and an ongoing concern, it’s actually a great resource for managers inside of a small business or mid-sized business as well.

The authors have done a terrific job of including important, and sometimes heavy, topics without making them seem overwhelming or impossible to accomplish.

The tone of the book is straightforward without being glib or fluffy.  This is definitely a book (and a series) that deserves a place on your office bookshelf.



Got 2 Hours and a Management Challenge? Read “Managing Your Business”

Got 2 Hours and a Management Challenge? Read “Managing Your Business”

Do you know why your business isn’t growing?  It’s probably because you think you know how to manage it all.  But, if you find yourself thinking you have too much to do, thinking you don’t have enough time and thinking, “I should not have to deal with this,” then guess what - you are in …

Content

Usefulness

Freshness

88

Summary

Primarily written for business owners “with infrastructure,” a business with employees and an ongoing concern, it’s actually a great resource for managers inside of a small business or mid-sized business as well.

88

Do you know why your business isn’t growing?  It’s probably because you think you know how to manage it all.  But, if you find yourself thinking you have too much to do, thinking you don’t have enough time and thinking, “I should not have to deal with this,” then guess what - you are in management overwhelm.

Managing Your Business (A Crash Course for Entrepreneurs) is a short and simple step in taking control of your management dilemma.  Written by a team of entrepreneurial veterans; Scott Girard, Michael O’Keefe and Marc Price (@expertbizadvice). Between the three of them, they’ve started and run more than 17 businesses.  They got together to create an entire series of short and sweet books for business owners called A Crash Course for Entrepreneurs.

The purpose of the Crash Course series is to give entrepreneurs overviews on the most important topics that drive business success.  Other installments in the series include:

  • Starting a Business
  • Sales and Marketing
  • Business Finance Basics
  • Business Law Basics

You could say that this is similar to the One-Minute Manager series or the Dummies’ series.  If you like those kinds of books, you will certainly appreciate this one.

I would say that this falls somewhere in between these two examples as far as details are concerned.  I would say it’s a 10,000 foot view of running your business instead of a 30,000 foot view or a 30 foot view.  It’s just big enough to help you get focused without becoming overwhelming.

Everything You Wanted to Know About Managing Your Business

The book is divided up into four chapters:

Chapter 1 - Leadership Basics: Where they summarize decades of tried and true leadership strategies along with the more recent tips on managing effectively.  This includes leadership styles and basic leadership skills

Chapter 2 - Polishing Yourself Up: Don’t be offended by this section of the book, rather take an open-minded look at professional etiquette, a handy section on common writing and speaking mistakes and a great chapter on walking the line between confidence and cockiness.

Chapter 3 - Employee Management: Whether your business has full-time, part time or even virtual employees, you’ll want to take look at this section.  Other than getting customers, this is the next most popular topic for business owners.  There are some terrific tips designed to help owners find and hire great employees as well as how to deal with difficult employees.

Chapter 4 - Strategic Thinking and Acting: Of course, there has to be a section that drives you to work ON your business and not IN your business.  This section is all about how to think and how to put your ideas into action.

It’s Just the Right Amount of Information for Overwhelmed Business Owners

While this book is primarily written for business owners “with infrastructure,” a business with employees and an ongoing concern, it’s actually a great resource for managers inside of a small business or mid-sized business as well.

The authors have done a terrific job of including important, and sometimes heavy, topics without making them seem overwhelming or impossible to accomplish.

The tone of the book is straightforward without being glib or fluffy.  This is definitely a book (and a series) that deserves a place on your office bookshelf.



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